Gemcom’s Kazakh team of three recently travelled 9000 kilometres to the headquarters of the AustralAsian Business unit in Perth. Whilst much of their time was occupied with enhancing their software skills before the big Kazakhstan office opening in June, their visit also allowed them to spend some time getting to know the team in Perth and for us here to learn more about their roles and their experiences working in Kazakhstan.
Friday night drinks in the kitchen are a Gemcom tradition - it’s a great opportunity for everyone to unwind and socialise with their colleagues. The Kazakhs cleverly produced bottles of Kazakh Vodka and Cognac– with the Cognac proving to be immensely popular with everyone in the office!
Indeed, while discussion over drinks was a chance for everyone to experience a taste of Kazakh spirits, we learned that it is actually tea and milk that is the drink of choice for most Kazakhs back home. Zhanash Sultanova, Gemcom’s Senior Mining Engineer, is now a self-proclaimed ‘Coke-a-holic’ just like some of our Australian Research and Development team.
Beverages aside, for the Kazakh team it seemed the most notable thing about arriving in Perth from Central Asia was the immense difference in weather temperatures. “Flying from -30C and freezing cold to sunny 30 degree weather – it’s a huge difference!” says Timur Aubakirov, Product Specialist, our newest addition to the team. Being a fan of Surpac for quite some time now, Timur was recently hired by Gemcom specifically for his experience in using the software. Changing from being a Gemcom client to a Gemcom employee has been a rather smooth transition, and he now hopes to broaden his perspectives in his new role with other Gemcom products.
Alexey and Zhanash have both been providing Surpac training in Kazakhstan, but in the near future, Alexey hopes to start training the local mining community in MineSched and Zhanash, GEMS. The team has now trained in many Central Asian countries including Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, where many large mining operations are located.
Although the weather in Perth provided the biggest impression, the Kazakh team really enjoyed everything Perth has to offer – especially the beach. Jumping (literally) right into Australian beach culture, Alexey was eager to add the Indian Ocean to his list of saltwater swim spots - a significant accomplishment considering he has swum in four seas but never an ocean.
One of the other most noticeable features of Perth that many seem to forget about is the insects - particularly the large cockroaches! Let’s not even talk about snakes, sharks and spiders... The food was a rather big change for the Kazakhs too, especially since they were not accustomed to eating too much ‘dry’ food. Because soup and boiled horse meat is a big part of their diet back home, the difference in culture and cuisine came as quite an adjustment.
Besides the many entertaining culture, cuisine and insect stories, the Roving Kazakh's experience was a great experience in affording them to gain a large insight into the mining and software expertise necessary for the many projects going on back in Kazakhstan. With Gemcom's new office opening in June 2011, Timur is confident that the year will be one of significant progress with many promising projects and training opportunities to come.
